Daniel was being asked 500 years before Christ to see history from his day clear into the future of our day to events that haven’t even happened now. What’s being pictured here is a long and difficult time with much trouble for the nation of Israel. And that’s a very significant prophecy because they’ve just been through 70 years of captivity and they’ve had a very difficult time. And now Daniel gets a vision of the tremendous struggle that the people of Israel are going to have with satanic forces clear till the end of time. And that’s going to take us all the way to the end of the tribulation period.
SPEAKER 01 :
This is Hope for Today with Bible teacher and author, David Hawking. On today’s program, we step into one of the most jaw-dropping scenes in all of Scripture. In Daniel chapter 10, a vision bursts into reality, and Daniel comes face to face with a figure who shines like fire, speaks like thunder, and carries the majesty of heaven itself. Some believe this is a glorious glimpse of the Messiah. Others see a heavenly messenger. But either way, what happens next pulls back the curtain on spiritual war that most of us never even consider. Day one of our study in Daniel 10, a vision of the Messiah begins in mere moments. First, have you downloaded Your Quest for God? This powerful booklet by Richard A. Bennett is available as a free download in multiple languages right now on the homepage at DavidHawking.org. A Vision of the Messiah is a straightforward biblical guide for anyone seeking to know God, and it’s one of several free resources we offer to help you grow in your faith. But friend-free doesn’t mean costless. Future programs and resources like this are made possible by the faithful support of listening friends like you. To donate or download your free copy of A Vision of the Messiah, visit davidhawking.org. That’s davidhawking.org. And you can also donate by phone at 1-800-75-BIBLE in the U.S. or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. As promised, here’s David with today’s study.
SPEAKER 03 :
A Vision of the Messiah, Daniel chapter 10. In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a message was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar. The message was true, but the appointed time was long, and he understood the message and had understanding of the vision. In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant food, no meat or wine came into my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, which is a sign of joy according to the book of Proverbs, till three whole weeks were fulfilled. Now on the 24th day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river that is the Tigris, I lifted my eyes and look and behold a certain man clothed in linen, whose waist was girded with gold of Euphaz. His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like torches of fire, his arms and feet like burnished bronze in color, and the sound of his words like the voice of a multitude. And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision. For the men who were with me did not see the vision, but great terror fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves. Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, and no strength remained in me, for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength. Yet I heard the sound of his words, and while I heard the sound of his words, I was in a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground. Then suddenly a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands. And he said to me, O Daniel, man greatly beloved. Understand the words that I speak to you and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you. While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling. Then he said to me, Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come because of your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days.” And behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia. Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come. When he had spoken such words to me, I turned my face toward the ground and became speechless. And suddenly, one having the likeness of the sons of men, touched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke, saying to him who stood before me, My Lord, because of the vision, my sorrows have overwhelmed me, and I have retained no strength. For how can this servant of my Lord talk with you, my Lord? As for me, no strength remains in me now, nor is any breath left in me. Then again, the one having the likeness of a man touched me and strengthened me. And he said, O man greatly beloved, fear not. Peace be to you. Be strong. Yes, be strong. So when he spoke to me, I was strengthened and said, Let my Lord speak, for you have strengthened me. Then he said, Do you know why I have come to you? And now I must return to fight with the prince of Persia. And when I have gone forth, indeed the prince of Greece will come. But I will tell you what is noted in the Scripture of truth. No one upholds me against these except Michael, your prince. Continue in verse 1, please, of chapter 11, which finishes the discourse here. Also in the first year of Darius the Mede, I, even I, stood up to confirm and strengthen him. Probably referring to Michael the prince in the last of verse 21. Well, there’s a number of things in this passage that are not only troublesome, but it’s kind of amusing when you read some commentators. They basically run over them. You can always tell when somebody is not quite sure what to say or whether they understand a passage is whether or not they jump over it. They skip over the verse. The other day a person asked me, David, do you ever skip a verse? And I think he meant it as it’s sometimes a tedious chore to watch me try to plow through each one. I may have an inadequate understanding as you do, and we all try to struggle with a word, but I believe every single thing that is written is for our understanding and admonition. I believe nothing should be left out. I believe we should study the genealogies. Don’t have to do it every day, but I do recommend that we all understand this is God’s Word. And in this passage, there are some troublesome things about a prince of Persia, about this man clothed in linen, who he really is, and what this is all about. Well, let me break it down for you in four areas. In the opening three verses, we have the effect of the vision upon Daniel, the effect of that vision. In verses 4 to 9, we have the encounter with the man clothed in linen. In verses 10 to 14, we have the explanation of the vision. And in verses 15 to 21, we have the enablement of Daniel to receive and understand that vision. Now let’s back up and take a look at the effect of the vision upon Daniel. And I want you to see three things. First of all, it was received by Daniel in his old age. We’re told in verse 1 it was in the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia. Daniel is now 72 years after being led into captivity as a young man. The earliest we attribute in terms of the age of Daniel would be 85 years old, and he may be older than that. Daniel’s up in years now. He’s lived through the Babylonian Empire and their captivity of Israel, and he’s now in the Persian Empire. He’s watched the collapse of Babylon. And Cyrus the Persian is the new king. Daniel could have gone back, we believe, with some of the children of Israel who returned to the land of Israel. But as you know, he was appointed to be a strong leader over the And his age and his experience caused him to stay, I believe, in the land in order to protect the people of God that were still there and to deal with the issue of another empire that has now taken over and what will their attitude be towards the children of Israel. And as we learn in this passage, it wasn’t as simple as Cyrus deciding, oh, I think I’ll make a decree to help these people. There was a real battle over this, as we’re going to learn in just a moment. It was received by Daniel in his old age. Number two, it was revealed as a long struggle for the people of God. This vision was revealed as a long struggle. Look please at verse 1 again. It says, The message was true. It was totally reliable and dependable, and he understood it. But the pointed time of it was long. In other words, Daniel was being asked, 500 years before Christ, to see history from his day clear into the future of our day, to events that haven’t even happened now. There was a long period of time as he’s observing the struggle. By the way, it’s very clear in the Hebrew, a little stronger than what’s in my English Bible, the literal translation deals with a great conflict or warfare between Some translate great suffering. What’s being pictured here is a long and difficult time with much trouble for the nation of Israel. And that’s a very significant prophecy because they’ve just been through 70 years of captivity and they’ve had a very difficult time. And now Daniel gets a vision of the tremendous struggle that the people of Israel are going to have with satanic forces clear until the end of time. And that’s going to take us all the way to the end of the tribulation period. The third thing I’d point out about the effect of the vision is that it was recognized by Daniel, but that the future times were not clearly understood. If you’re following this carefully, this vision, beginning in chapter 10, goes all the way to chapter 12. Everything in this, and boy, there’s so much in these last three chapters, it’s all a part of one vision that starts out with a vision of a man clothed in linen, but extends all the way through history, clear until the setup of the kingdom of the Messiah on earth. Just flip over to chapter 12 for a minute to get an idea of that. If you read through this at one sitting, starting in chapter 10 and going through chapter 12, you’ll notice that it’s one continuous thought and discussion to Daniel. And then verse 4 of chapter 12 says, “…but you, Daniel, shut up the words, seal the book, until the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase. Then I, Daniel, looked, and there stood two others.” one on this river bank, the other on that river bank. And one said to the man clothed in linen, that’s the man introduced in chapter 10, who was above the waters of the river, how long? Verse 1 of chapter 10 indicates a long time. How long shall the fulfillment of these wonders be? Then I heard the man clothed in linen who was above the waters of the river when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven and swore by him who lives forever. This, by the way, is quoted verbatim in Revelation chapter 10. that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time, the most serious part of this struggle and conflict and suffering for the people of Israel. And when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered, all these things shall be finished. Although I heard, I did not understand. Then I said, My Lord, what shall be the end of these things? He said, Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. Verse 13, But you go your way till the end, for you shall rest forever. and will arise to your inheritance at the end of the days. When are the Old Testament believers resurrected? They are resurrected at the end of the tribulation period. Look back at chapter 12, verse 1. At that time, Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation even to that time. And at that time, your people shall be delivered. Everyone is found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever.” What is the end of all this terribleness that he is going to see pictured from chapter 10 to chapter 12? The end will be the resurrection of the Old Testament believers and the setting up of the kingdom of God. Back to chapter 12, please. Verse 12, “‘Blessed is he who waits and comes to the 1,335 days.'” Now that deals with 1,335 days after the middle of the tribulation when the Antichrist, we learned about from chapter 9 in our last message, will go into the temple that will be rebuilt by the Israelis and will desecrate it and ask that he be worshipped as God. That is the abomination of desolation. There will be 1,260 days, three and a half years, 42 months of persecution. Then we will have the coming of the Lord, the resurrection of the Old Testament saints, the judgment of Israel, and the judgment of all the nations on the face of the world, which will take approximately 75 days. And at the end, 1,335 days from the middle of the tribulation period, at the end of that period of time, Christ will set up His kingdom, and the prophecy that Daniel heard about will be all over. Amen? I can’t say it again. Okay, back to Daniel 10. So we look at the effect of the vision upon Daniel. Now the encounter with a man clothed in linen. Bible teachers disagree here, and some say the man clothed in linen is an angel, because they can’t imagine Christ fighting with the prince of Persia or with the angels or needing the help of Michael. That’s a part of the problem. The encounter with the man clothed in linen, verses 4 to 9. Three things I’d point out to you. One, it reflected the glory of our resurrected Lord Jesus Christ. I do not agree with those who believe it’s just an exalted angel of some type. I do not believe that at all. I believe this is none other than the pre-incarnate appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ to Daniel. I bring before you the proof of Revelation chapter 1, please. Revelation chapter 1, where this passage in Daniel 10 is quoted and refers to our Lord Jesus Christ. Who did Daniel see in this vision? This man clothed in linen who was standing above the waters looking like he’s in control. He saw the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ. Our Lord is the exalted Lord, and He was King of kings and Lord of lords long before He’s announced to be King of kings and Lord of lords. The miracle is His incarnation. The Bible calls it a mystery, 1 Timothy 3.16, that God was manifest in the flesh. Jesus is the eternal Son of God. Jesus has always existed. He had no beginning or end. He came into this world, became flesh. It doesn’t say He was flesh. The word become in John 1.14 means a change of condition. He was the pre-incarnate Lord of lords and King of kings. Through the incarnation, which means to be made flesh, he became the baby in Bethlehem, died on the cross, resurrected from the dead, and today the picture of him is the same picture that you would have had before he became a baby in Bethlehem. Look at this passage in Revelation 1, and you tell me what you think. These are quotes from Daniel 10. Verse 12, Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me, says John, who wrote Revelation about 95 A.D., almost 600 years after Daniel. And having turned, I saw seven golden lampstands. And in the midst of the seven lampstands, one like the son of man, Daniel speaks of him like one of the sons of men, clothed with a garment down to his feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. Same thing said in Daniel 10. His head and his hair were white like wool, as white as snow. Pictured in chapter 7, by the way, of Daniel. And his eyes like a flame of fire, back to chapter 10 of Daniel. feet like fine brass, refined in a furnace, a voice as the sound of many waters, also said in Daniel chapter 10. He had in his right hand seven stars, out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and his countenance was like the sun, shining in its strength. And when I saw him, like Daniel, John fell at his feet as dead. But he touched me, he laid his hand on me, just like he did Daniel, and said, Do not be afraid, same thing he said to Daniel.” Who is this one? I am the first and the last. Words given to the only God there is in the book of Isaiah. I am the first and last. I am he who lives and was dead. He’s talking about himself, his experience of dying on the cross. And behold, I am alive forevermore. I have the keys of Hades and of death. The devil is not the king of hell. He’s a chief prisoner. Now, who are we talking about? We’re talking about Jesus Christ, our Lord. This is the revelation of Jesus Christ. So back to Daniel 10. The one Daniel sees is our blessed Lord, clothed in linen. Linen is always associated with holiness. Check out Leviticus 16.4. It’s holiness, the separateness of this one. It was so awesome. It had a tremendous impact upon Daniel and even the people who didn’t see it exactly but saw something happening. The body says his face was the appearance of lightning, verse 6. Do you remember in Matthew 17 on the Mount of Transfiguration with Peter, James, and John? For one moment, Jesus pulled back the curtain of his flesh, so to speak, and let the radiance of his presence shine. And the Bible says they were all blinded by it. And they were astonished and fearful. And when they finally got themselves back together and could see, they saw no man save Jesus only. They heard a voice from heaven that said, this is my beloved son, you hear him. You know, when I look at this whole thing, we’re talking a tremendous impact. And I’m afraid that we in our culture have Jesus watered down. We see him on the hills of Galilee. We picture him as the baby in Bethlehem. And rightly so, if we’re thinking of the past. If you’re thinking of now, that is not the way Jesus Christ looks. He is the glorified God of the ages. God manifests Himself as Father and Son and Holy Spirit. We’re talking the glorified Jesus Christ. And whenever anybody saw His glory, they didn’t sit around, shake hands, and take, you know, a punch and cookies with Him. It was not fellowship time. It was falling flat on your face, overwhelmed with the awesomeness of the glory of Jesus Christ. We need to restore that to our worship, don’t we? You know that, Christians.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, indeed we do. And friends, you’re listening to Hope for Today. And we’ll have more teaching from David in just a moment to close out today’s time in God’s Word. First of all, Matt’s here, and we’re going to tell you about a resource I don’t think you’re going to want to miss out on. What is the central message of Revelation? And how close are we to the events portrayed in this final book of the Bible? Well, if you really enjoy digging deep into the book of Revelation. Then you’ll certainly appreciate my dad’s book on Revelation titled The Book of Revelation, Understanding the Future. Revelation is a critical book of the Bible because it tells us what to expect as this age draws to a close. And what should we do to prepare for these final days? Will the rise of the Antichrist be sudden? Will his rule be long? Yeah. Well, if you’d like to know the answers to these questions, get your copy of Revelation, Understanding the Future. It’s usually $25, but this month it’s just $20. That’s a nice discount ahead of our Revelation radio series, as you know, Matt, which launches in just a few days. The book captures much of what David will be teaching. And shares even more in-depth details and insights. Exactly. And another most helpful tool we have for you is David’s original sermon notes from his study of Revelation that he used as he preached the sermons, Matt. Yeah, key points, references, and outline points will help you track along and get the most out of your daily study time in this upcoming series. The Revelation sermon notes are just $10. Purchase them online. You can download them, get them right away, or PDF, CD. Yeah, call us in Canada at 1-888-75-BIBLE. In the U.S., call us at 1-800-75-BIBLE. And Bible by the Numbers is 24253. Well, and also please know that your resource purchase or donation will help the ministries of Hope for Today and make you a co-laborer with us in the work. And please start by praying for Hope for Today and give if God lays the work on your heart. Well, also, if you haven’t yet ordered David’s complete MP3 series in the book of Daniel, it’s a chapter-by-chapter audio series that’s a great tool to help you understand Bible prophecy with clarity and conviction. The entire series, again, is available for just $30. Our series in Daniel, and you can order by phone at 1-800-75-BIBLE in the U.S. or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada or or visit us online anytime you like at davidhawking.org. And by the way, as Matt said, please do pray for us. This ministry depends on God’s power and the prayers of His people. In fact, pray for us every day if at all possible. Put a reminder on your phone or on your calendar. And we also count it a privilege to stand with you in prayer as well. If you have a need or a burden that’s really pressing on your heart right now, Share that with us. You can share that by phone or write to us at Hope for Today, Box 3927, Tustin, California, 92781. That’s in the U.S. Or in Canada, write to Hope for Today, Box 15011, RPO7OAKS, Abbotsford, B.C., V2S 8P1. Let’s get back to David.
SPEAKER 02 :
Thank you for listening to Hope for Today and to Daniel. What a great prophecy and how it relates marvelously to the book of Revelation and to all the minor prophets who focus on the day of the Lord. Now, we’re in Daniel chapter 10, calling it a vision of the Messiah. It was received by Daniel literally in his old age, the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia. Seventy-two years after Daniel was carried away into captivity as a young person, he’s about 85 years old now, so he’s an old dude. He not only received this vision in his old age, But secondly, it was revealed as a long struggle for the people of God. The message was true, but the appointed time was long. Literally, there was great conflict or warfare involving great suffering and a long and difficult time with much trouble for the nation of Israel. It was recognized by Daniel, but the future times were not clearly understood. Now, this vision will continue clear through chapter 12 at the end of the Daniel commentary. And don’t forget to get your copy. It’ll give you a lot more than we’re doing even on the air. And you can also… as I don’t want to fail to mention, you can donate to Hope for the Day and help us right on our website. So again, davidhocking.org. If you’re in the United States, it’s toll-free 1-800-75-BIBLE. If you’re in Canada, it’s 1-888-75-BIBLE. Plan to be with us for our next study. God bless you.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, and friend, if you’d like to order the commentary on Daniel that David just mentioned, the title of this is Daniel, Prophecies of the Last Days, and it’s available right now for just $20. It’s a verse-by-verse resource. It’s a perfect companion to our current radio series, and it will help you go even deeper into the prophecies and powerful truths found in this remarkable book. To order Daniel, Prophecies of the Last Days, David’s commentary on Daniel, call us at 1-800-75-BIBLE, that’s in the U.S., or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada, Bible by the numbers 24253, or visit us online at davidhawking.org. Next time on the broadcast, it’s day two of our message from Daniel chapter 10, A Vision of the Messiah. Invite a friend to listen along with you, and we’ll see you then, right here on Hope for Today.
